Remember that home that was being built in Rivercrest for twice-former Rocket Mike James when he got traded away (the second time) back in 2008? The one that looked uncannily like the Royal Oaks home of Juwon Howard, for whom the Timberwolves swapped James back down to Houston? The pricetag on the 11,384-sq.-ft. home, with full-size regulation basketball court included, is set at $6 million as of the property’s late-May reemergence onto the market. The house was listed at just under $7.5 million back in September 2014 (after reportedly being shopped around for $8 million previously) and was pulled in December of last year following a half-million drop.

The new listing mentions hydrotherapy immersion tanks, a putting green, and the pool below:

Previously packaged as a property combining home, pool, and horse-friendly grounds, this Rivercrest spread on more than 7 acres west of Gessner near Briar Forest was relisted this week — for lot value. The asking price is $2.9 million, a step down from the $3.199 million sought for 6 months ending April 2013. Since then, the back half of the property has been cleared. But horses are still welcome.

Listed earlier this week, for $3.8 million: This 3-story home, designed in 2008 by Houston architect Allen Bianchi for the president of a stone supply company. That would explain the more than 20,000 sq. ft. of stone surfaces attached to the house, including the limestone cladding outside. The 4-bedroom, 5-1/2-bath block sits on 3 3/4 gated acres on West Rivercrest, just a few mansions south of Briar Forest Dr.

Remember that crowd-friendly but vacant and unfinished mansion on Rivercrest that State Rep. Hubert Vo has been trying to unload since mid-2006? It may soon have a buyer! Abc13 reporter Miya Shay says former city attorney Ben Hall — who would need to move inside Houston city limits from his current home in Piney Point Village if he decides to run for mayor — is interested in buying it!

The house is nice, very nice. It’s currently listed for $3.9 million on HAR. There are 8 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms and 2 half baths, and an 8 car garage. So, if Hall buys the house, you can bet that his mayoral ambitions are pretty real. Imagine the fundraisers he can hold there!

The $800K price cut apparently went through last May. And though the revised listing still lists the home as “under construction,” the rooms now look . . . finished!

A reader reports that the large and well-turreted home at the corner of Rivercrest and Westheimer — not far from State Rep. Hubert Vo’s curious mansion — is almost complete:

The home belongs to Mike James, formerly of the Houston Rockets, who was traded to the Timberwolves, only to be traded back in exchange for Juwan Howard. The irony is that the home is an exact replica of Juwan Howard’s home in Royal Oaks, just a few miles down the road (Mike and his wife were unaware of this as their “Manager” picked out the plan — they were not amused when they found this out after Mike and his manager parted ways). It was designed by Berrios Designs (exceptional building designer), as was the guest house and the full NBA regulation indoor basketball court at the back of the ~3.5 acre property. The property also features two putting greens complete with dual sand bunkers and a water hazard, a “sunken” pool between the guest and main house, and a gym and dance studio attached to the basketball court. Sadly, the project, which had so much potential, is being finished on the cheap because of cost over-runs caused by their former manager (trying to do things cheap generally ends up costing a lot more money). Regardless, it is turning out pretty decently, but could have been done so much better.

Mike James’s house under construction in Rivercrest is pictured at the top of this story; Juwan Howard’s home in Royal Oaks is the one below it.

We hope the house-plan trade works out better than the player trade: James was sent to the New Orleans Hornets in February. But he says he’ll be back!

After the jump, more glimpses of Mike James’s Howardian manor and sports compound, plus a look inside the Royal Oaks home it’s modeled after!

As recently as last Friday, the home owned by State Rep. Hubert Vo and his wife in Memorial’s Rivercrest subdivision was listed on HAR as “Option Pending.” Then — by yesterday — it was back on the market. Did something happen to disrupt a potential sale?

The new, 23,000-sq.-ft. “awesome Mediterranean estate” at 31 W. Rivercrest has been listed at the same price for 21 months.

What’s the story? A comment posted to HAIF last November offers some clues:

That house is a disaster. I believe, it was, initially being built for Rep. Vo, but when the budget quickly ran out and then they realized it wasn’t worth what was spent on it, it has been a mess trying to get rid of the thing.

I met with an agent that was showing the house privately about a year and a half ago just before I started a project down the street and she eluded that it was initially being offered, still incomplete, for 7.5mm. So far as I know, it is STILL incomplete and has dropped a lot. Eventually, they will have to liquidate it. I wouldn’t be surprised if it is a tear down with as hideous as the house is.

The actual $4.7 million asking price has in fact held steady. For $200K less than Vo’s other real-estate offering, you get a 2.66-acre lot, an enormous brick home with 5 stairways, 2 attached garages holding a total of 8 cars, plus a separate guest house. And it’s all almost complete!

But this isn’t just your typical Memorial mansion for column-and-arch-crazed empty-nesters! Everything about this home — from its 8 bedrooms, 9 full baths, and 2 half baths, to its dual Master Bedroom suites — is tailor made for occupancy by large numbers of people!